Thanks to rose, madders10, yeet333 and Mx Akiyata for reviewing.

Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.

Chapter 81: The Last Resort

It is entertaining to use one's last resort against them.

It only increases the feeling of hopelessness.

…

James had asked Gabriel and Eva to take him to see Sigurd. The two had a feeling they knew what it might be about, but they didn't comment.

It wasn't as though the New Zealander was physically capable of doing something, anyway.

Supporting him between the two of them, they helped him to the room where the Norwegian was staying in. Of course, Marius and Oliver were still there, but James didn't pay them any mind, though he wasn't particularly happy to see Oliver there.

James smirked when he saw the Norwegian in the bed.

"Tell me, how does it feel?" James asked. "To be completely helpless. To be reduced to nothing but dead weight, while enemies lurk around."

"I'm not in the mood for this," Sigurd groaned. "If you want an apology, you're not getting it. Now go away. My head hurts enough as it is."

"I heard you tried to remain conscious when your counterpart was captured. Stubborn Northerner. You were supposed to succumb to unconsciousness."

"What do you know about this?" Oliver asked suspiciously.

"When I close my eyes, I see them," James explained. "And they were talking. Something about having to come and 'properly sever the connection'."

"Wait," Sigurd said, sitting up. "Are you telling me that in some way, I'm still connected to Lukas?"

"Yeah," James said, expression sombre. "It's small, but still there. Apparently, the result is that Lukas is less animalistic than the others. But they're going to need to sever the connection, and apparently that could prove painful."

Sigurd closed his eyes, and huffed when he couldn't see anything. He turned to James, who had closed his own eyes.

"They're going to use the magic touch," James explained. "And… something called the 'last resort of the magic trio'?"

"Don't ask us," Marius said. "We know nothing about that."

"I don't even think we have a last resort," Oliver said.

"I'll go ask Arthur or Vlad," Eva asked. "Well, I think we're finished here."

Gabriel eagerly nodded, wanting to leave as soon as possible. James sighed, and he allowed the Greenlander and Icelander to take him back to his own room.

…

Tolys watched and listened as the Deathplayers discussed their current plans. It disturbed him slightly, knowing the enemies' plans but unable to do anything to stop them or warn his allies.

He looked over towards the Reds, seeing them asleep. He particularly focused on Lukas, who still had some of his wits about him, but not his humanity. In other words, Lukas knew what he was doing, he knew who he would be attacking, but he didn't care.

The Deathplayers were discussing how to completely sever Lukas's connection with Sigurd without having those wits being lost. Apparently, having a pawn with the magic touch that wasn't completely animalistic would be useful to them.

And Tolys sincerely hoped that they wouldn't find a solution.

But when they made a certain suggestion, Tolys could feel his blood run cold.

…

Arthur was just about to go to bed with Will and Alistair when there was a knock on the door. The three Kirklands exchanged a glance before Will went to answer it.

"Oh, hello Eva," the Welshman greeted. "Is there something we can do for you?"

"Um, I just need to ask Arthur something," the Greenlander said, stepping into the room.

"Oh?" Arthur prompted, looking confused and intrigued.

"It's something that James learned from keeping an eye on Fletcher," Eva said. "I don't know how it works."

"Go on."

"Um, what is the 'last resort of the magic trio'?"

Arthur's eyes widened, and Alistair picked up on her sudden nervousness.

"Artie, what is it?" Alistair demanded.

"It was from back when we would regularly go to take care of magical threats," Arthur explained. "When we fought against a demon that was particularly strong, we came up with something to protect our minds from the demon's influence. That's where Britannia Angel came from."

"So you turned yourselves into angels to protect yourselves against a demon?" Will asked.

Arthur avoided her brothers' eyes.

"It was only I that could become an angel," Arthur whispered. "Well, Lukas in a way as well. He's a dark angel, and Vlad is a vampire king, which means he's closer to being a demon than normal vampires."

"What could these forms do?" Alistair asked.

"Well, there's the whole 'nullify magic' thing. Stronger magic, and…"

"Artie?"

"Lukas has this telekinetic pulse that would affect anyone nearby, particularly if they have the magic touch or if they're asleep. The results are… devastating. The only way Vlad and I managed to protect ourselves against it was when we triggered our last resorts as well."

"Do you think the Deathplayers might use that to their advantage?" Will asked, turning to Eva.

"I'm almost sure they would," she responded.

"Then I guess you'll need to become Britannia Angel," Alistair sighed.

"It's not as simple as that," Arthur said. "Britannia Angel is a simplified, weaker version. And there's a reason why it's called a 'last resort': it's too dangerous otherwise."

"I'll go talk to Vlad about it," Eva said. "If the Deathplayers are going to be using it, then he needs to be prepared as well."

Arthur nodded, and could feel how the worry rose.

This would not be good.

…

Kiribati was forced to write an email to Germany. It would seem that Antai was the latest target for attack.

…

Vlad worried her lip. Eva had relayed the message that the Deathplayers might be using the magic trio's last resort.

Of course, it wouldn't be the Deathplayers' last resort. They wouldn't use their own so early in the game.

…

Ferdinand looked back and couldn't help the giggle that escaped his mouth.

Luis wanted to keep an eye on him, but had fallen asleep, leaning against the wall.

Ferdinand cocked his head to the side, and he left his counterpart alone for a few minutes so that he could find a pillow and blanket for him.

He might not show it, but he was touched by the fact that his counterpart was so worried about him. It was the first time that someone showed him that they cared, even though he was completely and utterly insane. Broken. Even the other South Americans only barely tolerated him. They would check up on him, but when they couldn't handle it anymore, they would leave.

But Luis always came back.

Ferdinand was thankful for that. It was the longest he had been in one person's company, ever since…

He felt a wave of dizziness as his mind went to a dark place, and immediately shook it off. No. Don't think about it.

He returned to his painting, but he tensed when he felt something else.

So he grabbed a new canvas and painted, only somewhat thankful that the Deathplayers decided to let him in again.

…

Three Deathplayers loomed over the sleeping bad touch trio, chuckling at the sight.

"And now, a change in perspective," the Prussia Deathplayer said.

"Changing dreams into nightmares," the France Deathplayer said.

"And Nightmares into dreams," the Spain Deathplayer said.

The France Deathplayer had black hair and piercing blue eyes. He wore a tight-fitting black shirt with black pants and boots. He also had black gloves and horns atop his head.

The Spain Deathplayer had auburn hair with red eyes. He wore a black version of the matador outfit, and he had bull's horns on his head.

"With their minds unable to tell the difference, they will fall too easily," the Prussia Deathplayer cackled.

"Sweet dreams, little Pawns," the France Deathplayer said.

…

Oliver and Marius kept watch over Sigurd as he slept. And both of them had more or less the same thought in their minds.

"How is James able to check on Fletcher if their connection is severed?" Oliver asked.

"That's what I want to know as well," Marius said. "It just doesn't make any sense."

"Oh, but it makes perfect sense."

The two tensed when they heard the voice, and they turned to the door, where the voice came from.

It was Lukas, but there was something seriously wrong.

"Your eyes…" Oliver whispered.

"I thought you were one of those Reds?" Marius snapped.

"Oh, I am," Lukas said. "But I'm different from the others. Some of my magic, and Sigurd's stubbornness, is to blame."

"What are you doing here?" Oliver demanded.

"I'm here to properly sever the connection," Lukas said.

He raised his hand, and Marius and Oliver were sent flying to opposite sides of the room. They struggled when they felt an invisible force pinning them against the wall.

The door closed behind Lukas as he went closer to his counterpart.

"Stay away from him!" Marius shouted.

"I won't kill him," Lukas said. "It's too early in the game for that. But do you want to know how the connection works?"

The two remained silent, since that was what they were curious about.

"Sigurd and I are two halves of the same coin," Lukas explained. "Like you and Arthur or you and Vlad. We are one in the same. Different pasts, different personalities, different relationships, different bodies, but one soul."

The two widened their eyes, and Lukas smirked.

"That's why, when a Nation dies, their two halves merge," Lukas continued. "Because the soul was evenly split into two bodies. It's the way it's always been. You are the dark half of the soul, while ours is the light half. The two coexist with each other. One cannot survive without the other. That is the connection. And the Deathplayers sever it, ripping the soul in two. That is why you darker versions become physically weak when the connection is broken. The soul is reaching out to its other half, but the Deathplayers darken the light. The dark half is no longer the only dark half, and reconnecting becomes impossible. There is still a single thread of our soul connecting us, all because he was too stubborn to allow the process to complete. He subconsciously clung onto the other half."

"What are you going to do?" Oliver asked.

"First, I'll show you our last resort. You know, you almost triggered it on multiple occasions. But now…"

The two watched in horror as black wings came from Lukas's back. His clothing became black armour, and he had dark blue markings on his skin.

"The raven in human form," Oliver whispered. "That's Sig's…"

"Yes," Lukas said. "His apocalypse legend."

Lukas approached his counterpart and smirked.

"Time for our soul to be completely split in two," Sigurd whispered.

The two screamed when they felt something similar to their brains crying in their heads as it was crushed inside their skulls. Sigurd seemed to be feeling the same thing, for he immediately woke up and was screaming, writhing on the bed.

They realised that it was a telekinetic pulse, and they could see that Sigurd was feeling the worst of it, for it seemed as though he was screaming louder than the other two combined.

"Unscramble the mind, sever the soul," Lukas said. "And make an improvement."

…

It wasn't just Oliver, Sigurd and Marius that were affected by what Lukas was doing. Everyone with the magic touch, every potential Red and their counterparts, and the counterparts of the current Reds were affected.

In both worlds.

…

Vlad awoke with a start. She recognised this feeling. It was…

She was aware of the three people screaming next to her on the bed, but she needed to get her wits back. She needed to stop this before it went further.

So Vlad dragged herself out of the bed (actually, it was more of allowed herself to drop out) before she allowed her own last resort to trigger.

She could feel her canines elongate, and the familiar sensation before the batwings would burst from her back, but…

"Not so fast," a voice told her.

She felt a foot on her upper back and she winced, the wings being stopped before they could escape their confines.

She recognised the voice as her own, male voice, and realised that it was the Deathplayer that looked like her.

"Normally, we would leave things be, but you know too much," the Deathplayer said.

"What do you mean?" Vlad managed to choke out through the pain.

"You know what happened in Africa. We can't allow it."

She screamed as the Deathplayer pulled her up by her hair, and when he placed his hand over her eyes, the pain dulled as her consciousness slipped.

…

The Deathplayers watched as Tolys writhed as Lukas's influence could be felt by him even at their location.

It was imperative that Lukas personally went to sever his connection with Sigurd, and also to alter one other thing.

"He's loud," a voice said.

The Deathplayers turned to see that their Reds had been awoken, but they seemed less animalistic than before. They were more rational, but they were lacking their humanity.

This way, it would be easier to control them, instead of allowing their instincts to take over.

"He'll be quiet in a while," one of the Deathplayers said.

"No," Toris said. "I want to hear him scream."

The Deathplayers chuckled, and the rest of the Reds turned to go back to sleep.

…

Will and Alistair were also in pain, and they were screaming as well. Neither of them had noticed the Deathplayer that was looming over their sister, which he had knocked unconscious.

The Deathplayer lifted Arthur into his arms, and was about to leave when the door burst open.

He glared up at Alfred, who was one of many Nations that were checking on all of the others that were suddenly screaming.

"Should have locked the door," the Deathplayer scoffed.

The familiar British accent seemed to knock Alfred out of his stupor, but before he could say or do anything, the Deathplayer, along with Arthur, was gone.

…

Farai and Sammy were awoken by the screaming of Nations around them, and they wanted to go and check on everyone (they were sure they heard Anika's voice), but they were stopped by a Deathplayer standing in front of the door.

It was the South Africa Deathplayer.

"You two were naughty," she taunted. "What happens in Africa, stays in Africa, and now you told the Europeans. You need to be punished for telling."

The two of them gasped when gashes suddenly appeared on them. Farai on his back, and Sammy across his face. They screamed in fear, more than pain.

The Deathplayer smirked before she disappeared.

…

Lukas watched as Sigurd writhed, until the other lost consciousness. He smirked in satisfaction. The last thread had been severed, and they were now two souls.

Though it was debatable whether or not the Reds were considered as having souls. Oh well.

He stopped the pulse, and turned to see the counterparts of his former friends. They were panting, and still barely conscious. And they were glaring at him.

"Thanks for all your help," Lukas said.

"We did nothing to help you," Marius said.

"Oh, you'll see what I'm talking about. I believe round two will be coming soon enough."

They looked confused, before their eyes widened in realisation.

"Using your counterparts as bait might have been a good idea," Lukas said. "To you, at least. But the Deathplayers saw your strategy and intercepted. Nice try."

And Lukas left, leaving his counterpart and the counterparts of his former friends behind. But soon, Arthur and Vlad wouldn't be his 'former' friends anymore. Soon, they would be allies once again.

…

Ferdinand sighed, stepping away from the painting. The Deathplayers allowed him back inside, just so that he could paint what would probably be considered the most terrifying painting he had ever done.

Lukas, with black wings behind him, and without any shred of humanity. His eyes were no longer dull, but shone with a cold, hard cruelty that only the Vikings would have been able to achieve. The bloodthirsty eyes.

But he knew that it wasn't over. He had two other paintings to complete.

"So, that's what happened," Luis said.

"Si," Ferdinand sighed. "They used our own secret weapon against us. A weapon that we didn't even know about, but now it's too late."

"I'm going to go check on España," Luis said. "See if he's alright, and still… here."

…

Mahesh was terrified. The sudden onslaught of pain might have disappeared, but that didn't change the fact that he knew the pain. It was almost exactly the same as when Raj was taken by the Deathplayers.

He wanted to know if the others had experienced it as well, and wanted to ask them if they also thought that it was the same, so he dragged himself up and slowly made his way to the door.

Before he could reach it, it swung open to reveal a large figure.

Ivan blinked before he cocked his head to the side.

"What are you doing out of bed?" the Russian demanded.

"I just…" Mahesh started, before the Russian picked him up and carried him back to bed.

"You should stay in bed," Ivan said. "Recover, until we can get little Raj back, da?"

Mahesh wanted to argue, but sighed instead. He had a feeling that he wouldn't be going anywhere if Ivan had his say.

…

The Reds woke when they sensed two Nations in their midst. Raj immediately went to where Arthur was cradled in the Deathplayer's arms.

"Hello England," Raj said, his voice cold and a smirk on his face. "When you wake up, remember to tell me what it's like to be under my influence."

And with his new fangs, Raj bit into the unconscious Brit, who remained unconscious as the transformation started.

He turned to Vlad and did the same, before he went back to sleep.

Their numbers were growing larger.

Not exactly what I originally planned, but oh well.

I hinted a lot in the earlier chapters about Vlad's teeth, and how the magic trio seemed to almost be waiting for something. So I brought this in.

And the Reds now have some of their intelligence back, but not their sanity. They would have no problem with turning on their former allies, with Lukas even referring to Vlad and Arthur as 'former' friends.

The poll will be up until Monday, so this is the last chance to vote.